Weaving the Threads of CHI, May 4-9

When and where is it on?

The Association for Computing Machinery’s Special Interest Group on Computer Human Interaction (SIGCHI) will hold its annual flagship conference, the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2019), at the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow on May 4-9, 2019.

CHI  – pronounced ‘kai’ – brings together researchers and practitioners from across the world to discuss the latest in interactive technology.

This is the first time that CHI is being held UK.

How many years has it been going? Why does this conference matter?

Held annually since 1982, dozens of widely used products and technologies have debuted at CHI prior to market deployment, including the Internet of Things (IoT), smart homes, wearable devices, fitness tracking, social networking, instant text messaging, human-robot interaction, multi-touch and 3D interaction, and tangible interfaces, among others.

What exciting things can people look forward to?

Because researchers and practitioners presenting at CHI are on the leading edge of how society will be impacted by computing, the research being presented has far-ranging implications, including:

How “True Bitcoiners” Work on Reddit to Maintain Bitcoin

The Challenges of Working on Social Robots that Collaborate with People

Engagement with Mental Health Screening on Mobile Devices: Results from an Antenatal Feasibility Study

“I Feel It Is My Responsibility to Stream”: Streaming and Engaging with Intangible Cultural Heritage through Livestreaming

With an Eye to the Future: HCI Research and Practice in the Arab World

A Change of Perspective: Designing the Automated vehicle as a New Social Actor in a Public Space 

What opportunities are on offer for those attending?

Because CHI is about human-computer interaction, attendees can get hands on experiences with the next generation of interactive technologies.  Click this link for the list of  Interactivity and Demonstrations Highlights from 50 hands-on presentations, which include:

Physical Programming for Blind and Low Vision Children at Scale
Project Torino is a physical programming language for teaching basic programming concepts and computational learning to children ages 7-11 regardless of level of vision. Designed to be deployed at scale, Project Torino has been successfully used by 30 non-specialist teachers with 75 children.

Demonstration of Springlets: Expressive, Flexible and Silent On-Skin Tactile Interfaces. Springlets are the first non-vibrating mechanotactile interfaces that can generate expressive and silent tactile output in a skin-worn form factor. In our demo, we show how they are designed, fabricated and controlled. Visitors can wear Springlet interfaces to experience their output.

Demonstrating Kyub: a 3D Editor for Modeling Sturdy Laser-Cut Objects
We present an interactive editing system for laser cutting called kyub. Kyub allows users to create models efficiently in 3D. Kyub affords construction based on closed box structures, which allows users to make objects capable of withstanding large forces.

Who will be speaking?

Closing Keynote Speakers:

Ivan Poupyrev

Poupyrev is an award-winning technology leader, scientist, and designer working at the cutting edge of interactive technologies. He is currently Director of Engineering in Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects division, where he leads a team focused on inventing and developing interaction technologies and products for future digital lifestyle. Fast Company recognized him as one of the World’s 100 Most Creative People. Poupyrev will deliver the closing keynote of CHI2019, discussing his explorations of the present and the future where technology, connectivity and intelligence are woven into the very fabric of our lives.

What tips would you give to people attending to get the most out of it?

Plan your time using the CHI mobile app. There’s a lot of panels, workshops and papers on the future of how society will interact with computers.  Click here to see the CHI 2019 full schedule of events

How can people book tickets / when does it usually sell out?

Register to attend CHI here.  For those who cannot attend in person, some papers will be livestreamed. Check the program.

Anything else you’d like to add / we should have asked?

The theme of this year’s conference is “Weaving the Threads of CHI.”

“In organizing this year’s event, we sought to celebrate the different threads of CHI: individuals from multiple disciplines, computing professionals and academics alike, reflecting different cultures, sectors, communities, and backgrounds, weaving into one cohesive community, with the shared end of developing technologies to work for people and for society,” said CHI 2019 Co-chair Geraldine Fitzpatrick. “We reflected this celebration of our differences and our commonalities in our Celtic knot logo, a symbol of strength and friendship.”

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